﻿International Prayer Vigil for American Pastor Saeed Abedini

615 N. Water. Idaho Falls Call 522-9534.
September 26,2013 will mark one year that Boise

Pastor Saeed Abedini, an Iranian-born American citizen, has been
imprisoned in the notorious Evin prison inside of Iran because of his
Christian Faith. Naghmeh Abedini, wife of Pastor Saeed Abedini, together
with the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) is asking for an
international prayer vigil on September 26, 2013 in order to show our
prayer and support for Pastor Saeed and others imprisoned for their faith. In doing so we seek also to let our
governments know that religious freedom is not an issue to be silent about,

entreating them to take action to ensure that this human right is protected. Major

Christian leaders, including Franklin Graham, president and CEO of the Billy

Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan's Purse, have urged the U.S.

government to do more to help Abedini. More than 630,000 Christians around

the world have petitioned for the pastor's release, As of September 13, 71 US

cities have committed to this public Prayer Vigil on September 26, including six

Idaho cities. Notably, 14 cities in Brasil are hosting the event.
The persecution of Christians continues across Iran. Christians continue to be arrested, charges often undisclosed.
Prior to their arrest, some are put under pressure to renounce their faith and return to Islam. Along with torture,
Christians are facing sentences that range from years in prison to exile for their Christian activities. While
working on an orphanage in Iran with the government’s permission, Pastor Saeed Abedini was arrested by the
Revolutionary Guard in the summer of 2012 for his past help with Christian churches, which he had ended in
2006, in compliance with the government’s order.
On September 26, 2012, Pastor Saeed Abedini, was jailed in one of the worst prisons in the world simply because
of his Christian Faith and ministry six years earlier. In Evin Prison, Saeed Abedini has been beaten, tortured, and
put under great psychological and emotional pressure to deny his Christian faith. Naghmeh Abedini shared that
when his family in Iran was allowed to visit him in prison for the first time last November, they could see clear
signs of the beatings, including kicks to his stomach area, which is when the internal bleeding he has been
suffering from started. “He has been dealing with a lot of pain and internal bleeding since he was taken to solitary
confinement which has been horrific in itself…two times, attempts to break him and have him recant his faith.
He's gone through a lot the last year."
For many months he was denied all medical care because he was a Christian, considered unclean by Islam. After
much international pressure, mostly European, he was given some medicine for pain. Since then, the U.S pastor
has shown some improvement in his medical condition, but the ACLJ has said that he still needs treatment for his
abdomen, which the Iranian regime has not provided. "Iran's willful denial of his basic medical care is a
reflection of its inhuman treatment of prisoners of conscience," the ACLJ wrote in June.
But Pastor Saeed has stood strong in his faith in Jesus Christ and has become
for many the “face of the Persecuted Church” around the world and a symbol
for religious freedom and human rights. Scripture asks us to "Remember those
who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated,
since you also are in the body" (Hebrews 13:3, ESV). While the Bible clearly
states that persecution advances the Kingdom of God and the persecuted will be
blessed for their persecution, it also states that the Church should be ever
present to uplift the persecuted in prayer.
"We know God is mighty to save, and will deliver Saeed just as he did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
Daniel, David, Esther, Peter, Paul, Silas and countless others," reads a post on the Facebook page for the event.
When Peter was kept in prison, the Church fervently prayed to God on his behalf (Acts 12:5). And we see
that Peter was released from prison!
The Facebook post also shares Philippians 4:6-7: "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by
prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all
understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
Naghmeh asks us to pray for:
1- Pastor Saeed’s release from the Iranian prison.
2- Pastor Saeed’s health as he has been beaten and tortured and has been dealing with a great deal of pain and
internal bleeding.
3- Persecuted Christians worldwide. That the Lord would give them Grace and strength to endure the abuse and
persecution that they may be a shining light for Jesus wherever they are at.
4- Families of persecuted Christians. That theirchildren would grow strong in their faith in Jesus and not be
resentful. That the Lord would give the spouses strength and patience to wait and to be light of Jesus to their
communities and to the hurting world.
5- The outpouring of the Holy Spirit and Spiritual awakening in Iran. That many Muslims would come to know
Jesus in Iran and the Middle East.
6- Revival in our cities as we gather in unity to pray for the persecuted Christians. That the Lord would use this
time to awaken the churches and the Body of Christ in our cities and in our countries.
7- That Pastor Saeed’s imprisonment would bring great awareness of Christian persecution worldwide and be a
tool in protecting religious freedom worldwide.
We will also be praying for all Iranian Christians imprisoned for their faith, listing their names and some pictures.
Some videos will be used to show and illustrate Evin Prison and its policies.
Ex-Prisoner Hassan Shahjamali to Lead Prayer for Present Evin-Prisoner Saeed Abedini
A key participant in the meeting will be Mr. Hassan Shahjamali, an Iranian Evangelical
Christian from Boise, Idaho. In July 1994, Hassan was arrested at the Shiraz Airport on a
trip to Iran to visit his family. He was detained, interrogated and intimidated for
approximately two weeks in Shiraz Maximum Security Prison. “I was freed by the
manifestation of the power of God on my behalf (Acts 1:8). Glory to God! May the power
of the Holy Spirit become evident in our daily life. I also had the opportunity to meet with
the Iranian President Rafsanjani advisors and asked them some very tough questions
regarding freedom of religion which, if interested, I will discuss with you in person.” He
was eventually allowed to leave Iran due to international pressure. It was a miracle of
God that he got out. He has first hand experience of what it’s like in Iranian prisons.
Hassan and his wife Sylvia, a Navajo Native American, regularly minister the Love of
Jesus to the Navajo nation in Southwest USA. Hassan has also been an invited speaker at the (Idaho) Governor’s
Breakfast and ministers in Idaho prisons and Taiwan churches. He will be traveling from Boise to Idaho Falls for
this evening meeting. He will also speak and lead prayer at noon at the Pocatello City Hall (contact: Pocatello
Calvary Chapel).
The tentative (Plan A) program schedule in Idaho Falls is as follows:
6:30 PM Opening prayer. Outline of Meeting and its purpose. Biography of Hassan Shahjamali.
6:45 PM Videos and commentary on Persecution, Saeed, Testimonies of former Evin Prisoners, Growth of
church, Other Prisoners. Introduction of speaker.
7:10 PM Speaker: Hassan Shahjamali
7:40 PM Small Group Prayer
8:05 PM Full Group Prayer - reassemble to cry out, raise a “din” of prayer to God in heaven.
8:20 PM Closing Song (Maybe), Prayer for Hassan, who is retiring from Micron this month: that God will guide
his wife and him, and use them for His glory in this new stage of their lives.
8:30 PM Dismissal.

Organizer Information

Organizer name:

Eric H. Ottewitte

Organizer e-mail:

eho@q.com

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